Biography: Joe Barbera

This posting is a stub. You can contribute to this entry by providing information through the comments link at the bottom of this post. Please organize your information following the main category headers below….

Most people know him from the famous Hanna-Barbera studios cartoons, such as “The Flintstones” and “Scooby-Doo”, but there was much more to the man’s career.

Early Life/Family

Joseph Barbera was born in the Little Italy section of Manhattan, to Sicilian parents. (Wikipedia)

Education/Training

Career Outline

Published in Collier’s magazine in 1928, and off-and-on while working for the Bankers’ Trust Company in New YorkComments On Style

Influences

Personality

“He was Fred Flintstone: loyal, loving family man; a self-image as a working stiff despite all evidence to the contrary; Average Joe. Except that he was nothing close to being average.” (InsidePulse.com)

Anecdotes

“If you ever want to explore the cliche of “opposites attract”, you could definitely start with Joe Barbera and Bill Hanna. Hanna was the embodiment of what would eventually become the California surfer boy, blond, and tan. Joe looked like a Thirties version of Tony Soprano, dark with the typically wide Italian face. Hanna was refined, Barbera still had the patina of crudeness that Brooklyn, to this day, layers on its inhabitants. Hanna was shy, Barbera gregarious. Hanna was on the fast track at MGM, his loyalty to Harman and Ising paying off as he was allowed to direct a few shorts starting in 1936; Barbera was one of the New York imports, there to provide the muscle behind the scenes. But somehow they clicked. Friendship quickly led to partnership. Everyone at MGM started regarding Hanna and Barbera as a single entity.” (InsidePulse.com)
“[Barbera] could capture mood and expression in a quick sketch better than anyone I’ve ever known.” – Bill Hanna

Hanna and Barbera’s 17-year partnership on the Tom & Jerry series resulted in 7 Academy Awards for Best (Cartoon) Short Subject, and 14 total nominations, more than any other character-based theatrical animated series.

I would like to thank the membership of The International Animated Film Society: ASIFA-Hollywood for sponsoring my efforts to get this project off the ground during its first few years. In particular, I owe a debt of gratitude to ASIFA-Hollywood's president, Antran Manoogian. Without his unwavering support and valuable guidance this project would not exist. -Stephen Worth